Roland Griffin and Zach Lewis, transfers playing their first seasons with the Gaels, combined to score 49 points and Iona beat Fairfield 83-71 on Monday night to capture the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament title for the third straight time and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

It was the fourth MAAC title for coach Tim Cluess and every bit as sweet as the others, if not moreso, because of all the doubters that surfaced after the Gaels started the season 1-4 after being picked to win the conference.